Name: Ryan C. Sanchez

Master's Thesis Defense Meeting

Date: Monday, August 30, 2021

Time: 10 AM - 12 PM

Location: https://bluejeans.com/387996616/1522

Advisor: Michael Hunter, Ph.D. (Georgia Tech)

Thesis Committee Members:

Michael Hunter, Ph.D. (Georgia Tech)

James Roberts, Ph.D. (Georgia Tech)

Keaton Fletcher, Ph.D. (Georgia Tech)

Title: Frame Analysis: A Modern Approach to Factor Analysis

Abstract: We introduce and develop a new statistical method for exploring latent structures: Frame Analysis. Frame Analysis drops the one-to-one correspondence between factor dimensionality and vector space representation found in Factor Analysis. This minor change obviates factor rotations, simple structure, and provides equal status for cross-loaded items. We show that in Frame Analysis, manifest items are defined by only one frame loading and are uniquely characterized as a linear combination of latent variables: a frame vector. Through a series of simulations, we characterize Frame Analysis performance in three scenarios: Exploratory, Constrained, and Partially-Constrained. Finally, we apply Frame Analysis to archival five-factor personality data and provide evidence that hierarchical personality models are disguised frame vectors.